Happy Birthday
by htibberon
Summary: Oliver dies as soon as he turns eighteen and Lilly is left to mourn and learn that life goes on. Oneshot


Lilly was four when she first laid eyes on Oliver. It was the first day of kindergarten and her mother had her dressed up in a pink lacy dress and pigtails. A first grade boy had pushed a little brunette boy into a mud puddle. Lilly stomped over, away from the girls talking about Barbies, and yelled at the tall freckled boy. The first grader laughed at her, so she pushed him into the mud puddle and helped the little brunette boy up.

"Thanks," he said shyly, attempting to brush some mud off.

"Anytime, my name's Lilly, by the way," she smiled extending her hand.

The small boy shook it, confused. "Uh, I'm Oliver." Lilly smiled and Oliver smiled back. They both knew this was the beginning of a great friendship.

They were inseperable for thirteen years, now Lilly was sitting alone on her roof.

"Lilly! Lilly, where are you?" called Miley from Lilly's room.

Lilly sighed. "Here," she said just loud enough for Miley to hear her.

Miley climbed up to the roof and threw her arms around Lilly. "Lils, I'm so sorry. I know you two were close, closer than anyone I know."

"Yeah," Lilly answered confused at her crying friend, "And we still are."

"Lilly . . ." Miley looked at her with a worried expression. "Oliver's dead."

"No! He's not!" Lilly jumped up, almost falling off the roof.

"Lilly!" cried Miley.

"Leave me alone!" Lilly screamed then climbed into her bedroom window and slammed it shut.

Lilly ran around her room and found her cell. She went to her pictures and found the one Miley had taken the day before. It was at Oliver's eighteenth birthday, Lilly was in Oliver's arms bridal style and she had her arms around his neck. They were staring into each other's eyes with goofy smiles on their faces.

There was a knock on her window. _That must be Oliver sneaking in again, like last night. _Lilly thought, smiling to herself. _He must want another 'birthday present'! _Lilly giggled, Oliver like the present she had given him this year. She skipped over and opened the window. Her face dropped as she watched Miley climb into her room.

"Lilly," Miley said shivering as Lilly closed the window. "Are you okay?"

"I'm fine," answered Lilly, picking up her phone to look at the picture again. "It's you who's crazy. I'm glad you took this picture, Miles. Our last time before, you know, did it for the first time."

Miley walked over and put her arm around Lilly. Her eyes filled with tears as she looked down at the picture. "So that's why he was out last night. I'm so sorry Lilly." She squeezed Lilly's shoulder.

"For what?" Lilly asked irritated, shrugging Miley off.

"Lilly," Miley said slowly, grabbing Lilly's hands. "Oliver is gone. He's dead and he's not coming back. He got stabbed last night."

"No he didn't!" Lilly threw Miley's hands down. "He's at home, and he'll probably be coming through that window any minute now.  
What's wrong with you!?"

"Lilly, you are really starting to scare me." Miley shook her head, worried. "Why can't you understand that Oliver's gone?"  
Lilly screamed at the top of her lungs. "'Cuz he's not!!" she yelled. "Now get out!!"

Miley left Lilly's room, looking back, just once, at Lilly.

Lilly stayed up until three o'clock in the morning, staring out her window. Then, Miley came in, wrapped a blanket around her friend, and guided her over to her bed.. Lilly laid down and fell asleep.

xXx oOo xXx

_"Lilly," Oliver said slightly above a whisper lying next to her on the beach, looking up at the stars. "Did you ever think about running away together?"_

Lilly curled up closer to Oliver with a slight shiver. It was pretty cold out and all she was wearing was a short skirt and a tank top. Oliver wrapped his arms around Lilly and rubbed her arms. "We have before, don't you remember? We were nine and my parents kept fighting, I was freaking out so you packed us a bag and we took a bus to your aunt's house. Only, she wasn't home," they laughed together before Oliver took over the story.

_"So you used your skills and opened the door. It was late by the time we got in and we fell asleep on my aunt and uncle's bed. We woke up and made ourselves breakfast and sandwiches and walked home. We had no idea why your mom was crying so hard and hugged us when we walked into your house." Oliver smiled looked down at Lilly in his arms. "And now, eight years later, you're in my arms."  
_

_Lilly smiled and snuggled even closer. "So why were you thinking of running away Mr. Oken?"  
_

_"Well, Miss Truscott, we are graduating in two weeks and then we are going to different schools. I say we run away and get eloped." Oliver kissed Lilly's forehead and she looked up to see his eyes.  
_

_"Oliver, are you proposing to me?"  
_

_Oliver smiled again. "I sure am."  
_

_"We've only been together for four months."  
_

_"Only officially. Non-officially we've been together for thirteen years."  
_

_Lilly smiled. "Buy me a ring and ask me in a couple weeks."  
_

_"I will."_

xXx oOo xXx

Lilly walked downstairs the next morning and everyone in the attached kitchen and living room stared at her as she poured a bowl of Cinnamon Toast Crunch. She was at her mom's house, but her dad was there too. So was Oliver's parents and Miley. Oliver's brother and her own brother were hanging out in the backyard.

Lilly was tempted to ask 'Who died?' when she rememberes Miley's crazy story from the previous day.

"Lilly, honey," her mother said softly as Lilly began to eat her cereal. "The funeral is going to be held the day after tomorrow, and Mr. and Mrs. Oken were hoping you would talk at it."

"What funeral?" Lilly asked cautiously, taking a sip of orange juice.

Heather Truscott gave a weary look to Miley. "Sweetie, Oliver's funeral."

Lilly jumped up rapidly, knocking over her glass of OJ. "You too!?" she screamed before running out the front door. She slammed the door and took off running down the street.

"Lilly!" she heard behind her. She turned around to see the two twelve year old boys chasing after her.

She stopped and they ran up to her. "Lil, what are you doing?" Andrew, her younger brother, asked.

"I had to get out of that house." She didn't know why she suddenly felt comfortable with her brother, but she did. "Everyone in there seems to be convinced that Oliver is dead, but he can't be. He wouldn't go without saying goodbye to me."

"Lilly," Liam, Oliver's brother, said slowly. The same way Lilly's mother had. "Oliver was killed."

Hearing it from Liam was something else. He was smart and he had never lied to Lilly, he had had a crush on her for years. "Liam, I just can't believe it." Lilly's breathing sped up.

Liam took her hand. "Do you want me to prove it to you?"

Lilly considered his words and nodded.

He led her to a funeral home and squeezed her hand walking inside. She heard him sniff back tears when they got to a door. He opened it slowly, his hands shaking. He let go of Lilly's hand, unable to go into the brightly lit room.

There was a coffin at the far side of the room and Lilly walked slowly towards it. Each step seemed to take an eternity, and they all brought on a different emotion. The first step was short and quick, she let go of her denial. The next was more like a stride, she felt sad at the thought that Oliver may actually be dead. The next was confusion, how could Oliver be dead if he had just had sex with her. With the next step she felt her heartbreak. The three following steps, she took to notice to as she looked down at the ring on her finger, numb. She slipped it off her middle finger and put it on her ring finger. It caused her to picture his face, his beautiful hazel eyes and his soft brown hair. She remembered her love and it made her heart ache.

She was at the coffin now. She took a deep breath and looked down. A whimper escaped as her eyes began to sting. "Oliver!" she screamed as if in pain. His pale face was so serene, which made her blood boil. "How could you do this to me!?"

She spun on her heels and took off running. Liam moved out of her way when she sped past him.

She didn't stop running until she got to Oliver's house. She had been there so many times, it took her ten seconds to find the hidden front door key and unlock the front door. She deadbolted it once she got in and ran upstairs. She found his room exactly as it had been when she was there during his birthday party.

She began to yell and scream as she ripped thing off the walls, throwing everything out of the drawers, knocking everything off his desk, and smashing the pot she had made for him in fourth grade. It shaddered nicely and she watched it sparkle in the sunlight. She ripped down the curtains and took great joy in cutting them up. "I wasted my time making these for you!" she screamed as she snipped and tore them to shreds. "I wasted my life on you! I gave you everything! And what do you do?! Die!! You were always weak, I had to protect you! You finally start protecting me, and you die! How could you do this to me!?" She threw her arms up in the air. "How could you!! You lied, Oliver!! You lied!!"

xXx oOo xXx

_"Lilly!" Oliver's voice yelled at her. Not in anger, no in pain. "Lilly, how could you do this to yourself?"  
_

_It was Oliver's expression that scared, literally frightened her. He was sincerely disappointed in her. She was cutting herself in her room, when he found her. She had been doing it for a while, but no one had seemed to notice. Her dad had just gotten remarried and her mother had a new boyfriend and Oliver had a girlfriend, so they were too distracted to notice when Lilly began to grow disgustingly thin and wear long sleeved shirt everyday.  
_

_"Lilly, why?" He was scared for her, and ashamed of himself. How had this happen without him noticing it? She had always been there for him when he needed her, and when she was crying out for help he was too busy paying attention to a girl he didn't even really like all that much to notice. A girl he didn't like half as much as he liked Lilly. He held Lilly as she began to cry. He shed a few tears of his own. His girlfriend broke up with him when he started to spend all of his time with Lilly.  
_

_"Lils, I promise you one thing," Oliver told her as he helped her stand up. "From now until the end of time, I will protect you." He looked t her very seriously. "Now, I want you to promise me something - "  
_

_"Anything," Lilly said, interrupting him.  
_

_"Promise me that you trust me. And, promise me that you'll never do something like this ever again."  
_

_"I promise," Lilly affirmed quietly. "I trust you, Ollie. And, I love you."  
_

_He kissed her gently on the lips. "I love you too, Lilly."_

xXx oOo xXx

Lilly curled up in Oliver's bed. She inhaled the smell of his pillow like it was the sweetest smell she had ever smelt. Her anger had faded.

"Oliver, I'll keep my promise. But, I'm hurting, why aren't you protecting me?"

His duvet was wrapped around her as she began to think of everything she would give away just to have him back.

She spoke to the empty room. "Oliver, can you hear me? I miss you already. I want you back. God, couldn't you take me instead? How can I survive without Oliver? He is the reason I'm alive today, yet he's gone. It's not fair. If I become a better person, will you give him back? He doesn't even have to be with me, as long as he's alive and happy. I miss his smile, I'll never lose my temper again if I could just see his smile one more time. One more day, that's all I need, just one more day with him. It's all I ask, just to be with im one more time. Just to feel his heart beat, just to see his eyes sparkle. God, I miss him so much. Why did he have to go?"

xXx oOo xXx

_There was a car outside Lilly's house that she'd never seen before. She couldn't see the driver because it was dark out and the window were tinted. It honked at her._

_She knew her parents were in bed, and wouldn't let her out so late, so she climbed out her window and jumped into the tree out front, like she had many times before. She got to the car and realized that she was wearing a little slinky nighty, but she decided that she didn't really care._

_The car door opened in front of her and she crawled inside. She smiled when she saw Oliver._

_"Lilly, do you always climb into strange vehicles," he asked more seriously than she expected._

_"Uh," she couldn't think of words, he was angry at her, he was never angry at her. She looked down to avoid his blazing stare. "I'm sorry Ollie." Her voice was defeated and shaky._

_Oliver hugged her, "Sorry Lils, I didn't mean to scare you. It's just, you didn't even check to see who was driving. I don't want to lose you."_

_Her eyes were all teary and her nose had begun to run a bit. All she managed to get out was a weak, "Sorry"._

_Oliver had calmed down and closed his eyes, he sat back in his seat, giving Lilly time to pull herself together._

_"So, did you steal this car?" Lilly asked smiling when Oliver opened his eyes._

_He laughed. "No, I bought it."_

_Lilly shrieked, "Really? That's so cool."_

_Oliver smiled at her sudden change. "Yeah, want to drive?"_

_"Definitely!"_

_Oliver reached for the door to change seats, but before he even had his hand on the handle, Lilly had already climbed onto his lap. Oliver half laughed._

_"So, how do you drive this thing?"_

xXx oOo xXx

_Lilly walked down Oliver's street, like she did every morning. It was sunny out, so she was feeling pretty good._

_When she got to Oliver's house, her mood changed. A tow truck was driving away with Oliver's car and there was glass all over the road._

_Lilly stared in shock. It had definitely been rear-ended, and pretty badly too. She gasped. "Oliver," she whimpered as she ran to his front door._

_She walked right in, she always did, and sighed in relief when she saw Oliver sitting on the couch. He turned when she saw Oliver sitting on the couch. He turned to reveal a few cuts on his face, and she ran over to hug him._

_He hugged her back, and buried his face in her hair. "Lilly, I can't afford to fix my car."_

_"Who cares," she answered, hugging him tighter. "As long as you're alright."_

xXx oOo xXx

Lilly woke up in Oliver's bed, his room a mess. It was light out, too bright. Lilly covered her head with his duvet.

"I'm alone," she whimpered as a tear fell down her cheek, she curled up tighter. "Wh did he have to go?" She wallowed there in his bed for half an hour before someone found her. That someone was Liam.

He paid no attention to the destruction in the room, simply stepped over it to get to his late brother's bed. "Lilly, are you alright?" He sat down on the end of the bed and watched as Lilly slowly came out from under the covers.

She sat up, her back against the wall. It was cold, the wall, which was odd since it was boiling in the room. "No, Liam. I don't think I'll ever be _alright_ ever again. I need him, Liam. I need him."

Liam held Lilly as she began to cry. Tears of his own soon began to fall as well. When they were out of tears, quite a while later, they walked back to Lilly's house.

"Lils!" Miley ran over to hug her when she walked in the door. Billy Ray and Jackson were at her house now to.

Miley hugged Lilly and she stayed still, petrified.

"Lilly, are you alright?"

"No!" she screamed at the top of her lungs, pushing Miley away from her. "Don't call me Lils! Only he can call me Lils! But, he won't! So I never want to her that name _ever_ again!"

She stormed up the stairs to her room. She slammed her bedroom door and locked it. She searched madly through her room to find her scrapbook/photo album. She needed to see his face. She flipped it to the end, to see the recent photos. She smiled as she looked down at him smiling up at her. Tears filled her eyes and fell onto the picture which made her cry harder.

There was a knock at the door. "Lilly, let me in please!" called Miley from the hall.

"No!" Lilly yelled. "Go away!"

Miley heard something hit the wall inside Lilly's room. She knocked harder on the door. "Lilly, please!"

"Go Away!" SMASH

Miley was now beating the door with both hands, tears streaming down her face. "I already lost Oliver, I can't lose you too!"

Lilly threw the door open. "You lost Oliver!" she screamed. "I fuck him and then he gets killed! I loved him, Miles! I love him." She broke down in tears.

Miley held her sobbing friend, and tried to soothe her. "I know Lilly, I loved him too. But you loved him in a deeper way, this must be like hell for you. I'm so sorry."

xXx oOo xXx

_"Come on Lilly," called a six year old Oliver from a few feet away from Lilly in a little pink one piece bathing suit. "The water's nice."_

_The water touched Lilly's toes and she screamed a squeaky scream. "No, Ollie, I can't."_

"_Why not?" he asked stepping back further into the water._

"_Ollie, I don't like the water, let's go skateboarding instead," Lilly whined._

_Oliver frowned and walked towards his best friend. "It's too hot to go skateboarding today, Lils. The water is fine, can't you swim?"_

"_Yeah, I can swim." Lilly stomped her foot. "I learned in my auntie's pool. I just don't like the ocean. Let's do something else."_

"_But I love to swim. Please Lilly!" She shook her head. "What if we go surfing? It's like skateboarding just on water instead of concrete."_

"_For you, Ollie, sure," Lilly said with a forced smile. "Just promise me that you'll keep me safe."_

_Oliver ran out of the ocean and threw his arms around Lilly. "Always."_

xXx oOo xXx

The next morning, Miley took Lilly dress shopping. Lilly came along with minimal persuasion, but didn't say much.

Miley didn't mind. Just having Lilly there was good enough.

It was when she was handing Lilly a few dresses to try on when she noticed the ring on her best friend's finger.

"Lilly!" she squealed. "How long has that been there?" Miley pointed to the ring.

Lilly loked down and bit her bottom lip to hold back tears. "He–he g-gave me this the d-day of graduation." She looked at her ring fighting back tears. The ring was nice and simple, a pale gold and a clear round diamond. It had been Oliver's grandmother's ring and she gave it to him for graduation as it had been what he asked for.

"You were engaged?" Miley asked, her voice now majorly saddened.

Lilly nodded, tears now streaming down her face. "We were going to run away and get married in Vegas."

Miley hugged Lilly once again, "I'm so sorry Lilly." She had began to cry as well.

xXx oOo xXx

After the funeral, Lilly was rarely seen outside of her house. She began school in the fall and was like a ghost on campus. Miley went to a school on the other side of the country, so Lilly had absolutely no social life. She attended classes but never talked. She stayed in her dorm whenever she wasn't in class or at her job.

At Christmas, she went home and Miley talked for hours about her life at university. They had talked on the computer and on the phone, but she had so much more to say when they talked (or really Miley talked and Lilly listened) in person. Miley could tell Lilly was depressed, but she couldn't do anything to fix that.

xXx oOo xXx

_It was bright, Lilly sheilded her eyes and squinted trying to see where she was. It was too bright._

"_Hello?" she called out to the bright emptiness._

"_Lilly!" called a happy voice from behind her._

_She knew that voice, it was her Olvier. She dropped her arm and spun around. There he was, sparkling in the sunlight. He was dressed in all white which matched the giant smile on his face. His hair was blowing in the gentle breeze, and she couldn't help but reach up and touch his cheek. He grabbed her in his arms and picked her up bridal style. She put her arms around his neck and rested her head on his chest. He smelt so familiar, it felt so right._

_He carried her to a giant golden gate with a few couches out front. He sat her down on one of the couches and he sat beside her. He was perfectly poise which she did not understand as she sank down on the unbelievably soft couch. It was like being on a cloud._

_He put his own soft hand on her face. She took a deep breath as he leaned to her. "I've missed you my little Lilly," he said softly in a sing song voice._

_His breath smelt nice and she closed her eyes as she inhaled the scent. "I've missed you more, Ollie." Her voice sounded weak compared to his._

"_Lils, that's not possible." He was practically on top of her, running his fingers through her hair._

_Lilly let out a whimper._

"_What's the matter?" he asked in his soft powerful voice. His head tilted ever so slightly to the side._

"_It's been a long time since anyone has called me that," she answered, trying to avoid eye contact. But, his hazel eyes were far too difficult to keep from looking at. It made her realize that this really was her Oliver, the one she had always been able to tell everything. "Oliver, why did you leave me? I needed you, but you went away."_

_Oliver sat back with a defeated expression. He sighed. "I didn't want to, Lilly. I wanted to get married and live with you forever. Have kids and retire and rock our grandchildren on the front porch. I din't want to die, Lilly. I didn't want to leave you."_

_Lilly moved closer to oliver and ran the back of her fingers softly down the side of his face. "Well, what happened?"_

_Oliver closed his eyes and took a deep breath. He held her hands and looked her in the eyes. "I was killed, Lilly. It was a stupid mistake, I ended up at the wrong place at the wrong time. Our time left is coming to an end now, Lilly, you will wake up soon. So please let me say what I need to. I love you, and want to see you happy. Please stop holding onto me, I'm already gone. You need to live, I'm watching you and what you are doing isn't living. Do all you can, you are living for the both of us. Be happy and live in the present not the past."_

He kissed her gently as he began to fade, and he told her once again that he loved her and for her to live.

_Right before he faded to nothing, she managed to let out a quick, "I love you, Ollie."_

xXx oOo xXx

Lilly did as he had said. She began to live again. Cherishing every moment of her life, knowing it could end unexpectedly at any moment. She had fun, and Miley and her became closer than ever.

Oliver never spoke to Lilly again, but she still remembered every moment with him like it was yesterday. She dreamt of him from time to time, but the dreams became less frequent as the years went by.

On what wouls have been his twenty eighth birthday, Lilly laid three things on Oliver's grave. The first was a single red rose. The second was that last picture of them, the one taken on his eighteenth birthday. And the last was a letter that she had written him. She hadn't seen him in her dreams for so long and she needed to say what she needed to say.

xXx oOo xXx

_My Dearest Oliver Oscar Oken,_

_It has been ten years since I last saw you. Ten years since you breathed, ten years since we kissed. Sometimes I miss you so much, I odn't know how I can survive. But, I do, because I know that's what you would have wanted._

_Since you were last on this small planet, I graduated university and got a job that I love. I also got married. He loves me dearly, and I love him. I wish you could have met him, I know you would have liked him. He treats me like a queen. We had a daughter a few years back, but God took our little Madeline away. I hope you are taking care of her in heaven._

_I also have a three year old boy. His name is Oliver and he's the center of my whole world. He has brown hair and blue eyes. He is an angel on Earth. He reminds me of you in so many ways, which makes me happy. He is kind and gentle and loves video cameras. Even at three, he is already fascinated by them. He loves the ocean, just like you. His best friend is Miley's daughter, Hannah. She has Jake's blonde hair and miley's big blue eyes. She is adorable and Oliver treats her like a princess._

_I wish you were here to see everything that's happening to me. You will always be in my heart and I'll never forget you. I'll do the best I can in life, because when I die, I want to come be with you and Maddie in heaven, where we can finally be together in the place without time or space._

_Happy birthday, Ollie. I love you and miss you, and will until the day I die._

_Love always,  
Your Lillian Rose _

_xXx oOo xXx_


End file.
